International Briefs

Thursday, February 15, 2001 at 1:00am

Hindus in India on rampage over Valentine's Day

BOMBAY - Hard-line Hindus, bent on stopping love-struck couples from celebrating Valentine's Day, went on a rampage yesterday in many parts of India, invading gift shops, burning cards and disrupting festivities. The protests capped several days of uproar over the soaring popularity of the lover's day that right-wing Hindus denounce as a desecration of India's traditional culture.

Nigeria says it rejected plans for Gaddafi visit

ABUJA, Nigeria - Nigeria said yesterday that its own objections over protocol and security arrangements led to the cancellation of a planned visit by Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi. But the government denied local news reports that Gaddafi had called off the lecture visit after the rejection of a request to go to one of the northern states that has proclaimed Islamic sharia law.

Argentine court blocks razing ex-torture center

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina - Argentina's Supreme Court has ruled that a notorious former torture center believed to hold clues to the fate of thousands of people who disappeared in the 1976-83 'Dirty War' cannot be demolished. The Navy Mechanics' School in Buenos Aires, used by the military dictatorship to detain suspected leftists before many were shot or dumped from planes into the River Plate, is perhaps Argentina's most enduring symbol of state repression.

Colombia talks resume amid concerns for civilians

BOGOTA, Colombia - Colombia's main rebel force resumed peace talks with the government yesterday after a three-month break, with both sides signaling an interest in reducing the war's impact on civilians. Negotiators from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia Latin America's oldest and most powerful guerrilla group, sat down with government officials in a southern demilitarized enclave for closed-door talks yesterday for the first time since November.

Estrada denies owning drained bank account

MANILA, Philippines - Former Philippine President Joseph Estrada denied owning a bank account that once contained about $65 million after senators unsealed controversial bank records yesterday.